The town of Hempstead, N.Y., recently completed construction of a 100-kW wind turbine that will produce pressurized hydrogen for use by the town’s fleet of fuel cell vehicles.

Hempstead received over $4.5 million in federal funding for energy projects under the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant (EECBG) program. SourceOne Inc., an energy management and consulting firm, has partnered with the town as project manager and grant administrator for over two years. Hempstead is implementing a variety of energy projects.

Last month, major construction and vertical assembly of the 100-kW Northern Power 100 wind turbine was completed at Hempstead’s hydrogen station, where pressurized hydrogen will be produced and stored for use by the town’s fuel cell vehicles.

Construction began in early November with installation of the turbine foundation, consisting of a 16-foot mono-pile of reinforced concrete mounted below ground in a corrugated metal pipe. Following the main concrete pour and successful break tests after a 28-day curing period, the wind turbine was delivered to the site in sections and assembled – in spite of harsh weather. 

When the project is commissioned and interconnected, the wind turbine will provide all the power necessary to run Hempstead’s hydrogen fueling station and even sell some power back to the grid.

The hydrogen fueling station is Long Island’s first H2 station. It is located at Hempstead’s Conservation and Waterways Facility.

Hempstead officials said they are also looking forward to finishing construction on the town’s next round of infrastructure projects, including solar carports and a ground-source heat pump system for the Department of Conservation and Waterways headquarters.